Christians still robust, even as more Canadians claim no religious affiliation, national survey finds

Cardinal Thomas Collins at Toronto's St. Michael's Cathedral.

Photograph by: [Peter J. Thompson/National Post] [
, Postmedia News

OTTAWA – The proportion of Christians in Canada has dropped over the past decade – in large part due to increases in religious minorities as a percentage of the population – but a closer look at Wednesday’s National Household Survey data suggests The Shepherd has not lost His flock.

Although the 10-year decline of Christians, from 76.6 to 67.3 per cent of those who responded to the survey, will worry some, the actual number of professed Christians in Canada has seen little change. The 2001 census saw 22,851,825 Christians, compared to 22,102,700 in 2011, when the survey released Wednesday was conducted.

The number of Roman Catholics is virtually unchanged: 12,793,125 in 2001 and 12,728,900 in 2011.

Experts say the Catholic stronghold has been boosted by the immigration pipeline, with nearly half of newcomers identifying as Christian (47.5 per cent).

“The Chinese seem to automatically assume they’re Christian as soon as they get off the plane,” said Irving Hexham, professor of religious studies at the University of Calgary. “That’s a very common phenomenon.”

At the other extreme, the NHS reveals that a growing number of Canadians are identifying themselves as having no religious affiliation: nearly one-quarter (about 7.85 million people) of the population, versus 16.5 per cent a decade earlier.

“There’s a whole category of people who aren’t interested in organized religion and what they perceive to be its rules and requirements, but (who) don’t want to give up on the notion of spirituality,” said Pamela Dickey Young, professor of religion and culture at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont. “Then there are other people who just don’t find religion to be a useful thing to be affiliated with.”

Statisticians caution that there’s no way of knowing how good or bad the information from the NHS is.

The voluntary nature of the survey leaves gaps in the data from groups that tend not to respond to voluntary surveys, including new immigrants and low-income families. Nonetheless, experts believe the data should provide a fairly accurate broad-scale picture of Canada.

Of the Roman Catholics, the largest share lived in Quebec (45.3 per cent) and Ontario (31 per cent).

Canadians affiliated with the United Church were the second-largest Christian group nationwide, with approximately two million people, or 6.1 per cent of the total population, followed by 1.6 million Anglicans (five per cent of the population).

More than one million people identified as Muslim, accounting for 3.2 per cent of Canada’s population — up from two per cent in the 2001 census. Ontario was home to more than half the Muslim population.

Two-thirds of Canada’s one million Muslims lived in the three largest metropolitan areas: Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.

About 9,000 people surveyed in 2011 claimed to be Jedi, Statistics Canada said. In 2001, 20,000 people claimed the status of the Star Wars-movie-related philosophy.

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.